Individual, Open
| Date | 17 June 1956 | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Olympic | |
| Location | Stockholms Olympiastadion, Stockholm | |
| Participants | 66 from 24 countries | |
| Format | Two rounds. Total score for both rounds determined placement. | |
For the first time women were allowed to compete in Olympic show jumping. Two did so, Pat Smythe of Great Britain and Brigitte Schockaert of Belgium, with Smythe finishing 10th and Schockaert tied for 34th. The competition was held over two rounds, with the total number of faults for both rounds determining placement. The course had 14 obstacles, although the 5th obstacle was a double one, and the 12th was a three-part obstacle, thus with 17 jumps spread over 775 metres, with the time allowance given for a speed of 400 m/min.
The favorite was German Hans Günter Winkler who had won the World Championships in 1954 and 1955. Winkler led after the first round with only 4.00 faults, trailed by the defending gold medalist Pierre Jonquères d’Oriola with 7.00, and five riders with 8.00 faults – including the Italian D’Inzeo brothers and Pat Smythe. However, Winkler had pulled a muscle in his groin towards the end of the first round, and only started the final round to help his German team in the team competition with the aid of painkillers. However he was not able take the amount he needed to be comfortable in the saddle and was given coffee to help combat dizziness and double vision before he rode. Riding his prize horse Halla, Winkler rode a clean second round to win the gold medal with a total of 4.00 faults, as Halla seemed to ride the course on her own. The silver medal went to Raimondo D’Inzeo, whose second round was the only other clean ride in the competition. His brother, Piero D’Inzeo, was the bronze medalist, finishing with 11.00 faults.
Winkler competed at six Olympics (1956-76) winning five gold medals, one silver, and one bronze, but this was his only individual medal. Raimondo D’Inzeo competed at eight Olympics (1948-76), winning six medals with one gold – in this event in 1960. His brother, Piero, also competed at the same eight Olympics, also winning six medals, but no golds. He would win the silver medal in this event in 1960.
Winkler’s mount Halla, a bay mare, would follow him to the 1960 Olympics and win a team gold there, in addition to his two jumping golds in Stockholm, as Halla became the first horse to win three Olympic gold medals. Halla was by a trotting stallion and was foaled on 16 May 1945. She competed through the Brussels Grand Prix on 25 October 1960 and then was retired to stud, later dying in 1979, at 34-years-old.
| Pos | Competitor | Horse | NOC | Faults | Round #1 | Round #2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hans Günter Winkler | Halla |  GER | 4.00 | 4.00 (1) | 0.00 (=1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | Raimondo D'Inzeo | Merano |  ITA | 8.00 | 8.00 (=3) | 0.00 (=1) | Silver | ||
| 3 | Piero D'Inzeo | Uruguay | ITA | 11.00 | 8.00 (=3) | 3.00 (4) | Bronze | ||
| =4 | Fritz Thiedemann | Meteor | GER | 12.00 | 8.00 (=3) | 4.00 (=5) | |||
| =4 | Wilf White | Nizefela |  GBR | 12.00 | 8.00 (=3) | 4.00 (=5) | |||
| 6 | Pierre Jonquères d'Oriola | Voulette |  FRA | 15.00 | 7.00 (2) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| 7 | Henrique Callado | Martingil |  POR | 16.00 | 12.00 (=8) | 4.00 (=5) | |||
| 8 | Carlos D'Elia | Discutido |  ARG | 19.00 | 15.00 (11) | 4.00 (=5) | |||
| 9 | Mohamed Selim Zaki | Inch'Allah |  EGY | 20.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 4.00 (=5) | |||
| 10 | Pat Smythe | Flanagan | GBR | 21.00 | 8.00 (=3) | 13.00 (17) | |||
| =11 | Hugh Wiley | Trail Guide |  USA | 24.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| =11 | Alfons Lütke Westhues | Ala | GER | 24.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| =11 | Albert Szatola | Aranyos |  HUN | 24.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| 14 | Carlos López-Quesada | Tapatio |  ESP | 27.75 | 27.00 (=30) | 0.75 (3) | |||
| =15 | Bill Steinkraus | Night Owl | USA | 28.00 | 20.00 (=20) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| =15 | Paco Goyoaga | Fahnenkönig | ESP | 28.00 | 20.00 (=20) | 8.00 (=10) | |||
| 17 | Pedro Mayorga | Coriolano | ARG | 32.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 16.00 (=18) | |||
| 18 | Kevin Barry | Ballyneety |  IRL | 35.00 | 23.00 (=26) | 12.00 (16) | |||
| =19 | William de Rham | Va Vite |  SUI | 36.00 | 20.00 (=20) | 16.00 (=18) | |||
| =19 | Peter Robeson | Scorchin | GBR | 36.00 | 16.00 (=12) | 20.00 (=21) | |||
| =21 | Andrey Favorsky | Manevr |  URS | 40.00 | 20.00 (=20) | 20.00 (=21) | |||
| =21 | Gamal Haress | Nefertiti II | EGY | 40.00 | 20.00 (=20) | 20.00 (=21) | |||
| 23 | Billy Ringrose | Liffey Vale | IRL | 44.00 | 24.00 (=28) | 20.00 (=21) | |||
| 24 | Salvatore Oppes | Pagoro | ITA | 47.00 | 23.00 (=26) | 24.00 (=26) | |||
| 25 | Naldo Dasso | Ramito | ARG | 48.50 | 16.00 (=12) | 32.50 (36) | |||
| 26 | Koichi Kawaguchi | Fuji |  JPN | 52.00 | 28.00 (32) | 24.00 (=26) | |||
| =27 | Frank Chapot | Belair | USA | 52.25 | 36.25 (41) | 16.00 (=18) | |||
| =27 | Patsy Kiernan | Ballynonty | IRL | 52.25 | 19.00 (19) | 33.25 (37) | |||
| 29 | Bernard de Fombelle | Doria | FRA | 52.75 | 12.00 (=8) | 40.75 (42) | |||
| 30 | Salih Koç | Basak |  TUR | 53.25 | 24.00 (=28) | 29.25 (32) | |||
| 31 | Kunihiro Ohta | Eforegiot | JPN | 54.25 | 20.00 (=20) | 34.25 (38) | |||
| 32 | Anders Gernandt | Röhäll |  SWE | 55.00 | 32.00 (=35) | 23.00 (25) | |||
| 33 | Nelson Pessoa Filho | Relincho |  BRA | 58.00 | 32.00 (=35) | 26.00 (28) | |||
| =34 | Alexander Stoffel | Bricole | SUI | 59.00 | 27.00 (=30) | 32.00 (=33) | |||
| =34 | Brigitte Schockaert | Muscadin |  BEL | 59.00 | 32.00 (=35) | 27.00 (29) | |||
| 36 | Carlos, Marqués Figueroa | Gracieux | ESP | 61.50 | 33.50 (40) | 28.00 (30) | |||
| 37 | Marc Büchler | Duroc | SUI | 64.50 | 28.50 (33) | 36.00 (=39) | |||
| 38 | Alpaslan Güneş | Esmer Altin | TUR | 65.25 | 33.25 (39) | 32.00 (=33) | |||
| 39 | Vladimir Raspopov | Kodeks | URS | 76.50 | 32.00 (=35) | 44.50 (43) | |||
| 40 | Wilhelm Stewen | Lojal |  FIN | 83.00 | 47.00 (44) | 36.00 (=39) | |||
| 41 | Eloy de Menezes | Biguá | BRA | 85.00 | 56.25 (47) | 28.75 (31) | |||
| 42 | Renyldo Ferreira | Bibelot | BRA | 85.50 | 29.25 (34) | 56.25 (44) | |||
| 43 | Raymond Lombard | Dandy | BEL | 86.50 | 50.50 (45) | 36.00 (=39) | |||
| 44 | Georges Calmon | Virtuoso | FRA | 86.75 | 54.75 (46) | 32.00 (=33) | |||
| 45 | Tor Burman | Rouquade | SWE | 101.00 | 43.25 (42) | 57.75 (45) | |||
| Georges Poffé | Hicamboy | BEL | – | 12.00 (=8) | – ( | ||||
| Omar El-Haddary | Auer | EGY | – | 88.50 (48) | – ( | ||||
| Kauko Paananen | Lassi | FIN | – | 44.50 (43) | – ( | ||||
| Arvi Tervalampi | Marras | FIN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – ( | ||||
| Lajos Somlay | Dobos | HUN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – ( | ||||
| István Szondy | Higany | HUN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – ( | ||||
| Boris Lilov | Boston | URS | – | 108.50 (=49) | – ( | ||||
| Bedri Böke | Domino | TUR | – | 108.50 (=49) | – ( | ||||
| Víctor Molina | Tamanaco |  VEN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Jesús Rivas | Murachi | VEN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Roberto Moll | Sorocaima | VEN | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Peter Lichtner-Hoyer | Rienzi |  AUT | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Adolf Lauda | Schönbrunn | AUT | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Romuald Halm | Bianka | AUT | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Rodrigo da Silveira | Limerick | POR | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| João Azevedo | Licorne | POR | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Bert Jacobs | Dumbell |  AUS | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Saing Pen | Pompon |  CAM | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Isoup Ganthy | Flatteur II | CAM | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Birck Elgaaen | Osira |  NOR | – | 108.50 (=49) | – | ||||
| Douglas Wijkander | Bimbo | SWE | – | 108.50 (=49) | – |